Ricky Dimon
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It may be Super Bowl Sunday, but don’t forget about the NBA. There is a five-game slate, and all tipoffs are in the afternoon so as to finish before kickoff. This showdown between the Boston Celtics and Phoenix Suns is the one national TV game (2:00 pm on NBATV), so it deserves same game parlay treatment. Let’s take a look at the best such option for Boston-Phoenix, and be sure to check out our full preview of the game for picks on the side and total.
Suns (-110)
Chris Paul to record 6+ assists (-440)
Jayson Tatum to score 35+ points (+290)
Kemba Walker Under 2.5 three-pointers made (+104)
Parlay odds: +1881
Part of the value in same game parlays, of course, is that all of its components can be correlated if you so choose. That is somewhat of the plan here. We feel good about the Suns’ chances of taking care of business at home, and they would obviously benefit from Chris Paul dropping his standard amount of dimes while also containing Kemba Walker at the other end of the floor. At the same time, plays that aren’t correlated drive up the overall value of the parlay to a significant extent. That’s the case with an over prop bet on Jayson Tatum’s point total. But even if Tatum does go off, Phoenix should be capable of covering.
Suns -3 (-110)
Both of these teams are bit depleted at the moment, but the advantage in that department should go to the Suns. Boston is likely without Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart. Yes, the Celtics did well to beat the Clippers without them earlier this week but at some point a West Coast road trip with a short roster will take its toll. Phoenix will likely be able to overcome the absences of Jae Crowder and Dario Saric. That hurts the depth, but the home team won’t need to be deep here if Paul, Devin Booker, and Deandre Ayton play well. Look for the Suns to take advantage of the road-weary Celtics.
Chris Paul to record 6+ assists (-440)
This is the safe play of the parlay. Paul is averaging 8.5 apg in his first season with Phoenix and he has exceeded that number in three of the past four outings. In three of the Suns’ last five January contests, CP3 dished out at least 12 assists. Boston generally defends the perimeter well while being more vulnerable in the paint. As such, expect Paul to focus more on distributing than scoring on Sunday. Ayton may have a big game in the paint, complete with several alley-oops from his point guard.
Jayson Tatum to score 35+ points (+290)
With Brown and Smart likely to be sidelined, it will up to Tatum to shoulder the load. That is exactly what he did against the Clippers on Friday, when he went for 34 points and attempted 27 shots. Tatum did not even shoot particularly well (12-for-27) and he still surpassed the 30-point mark with room to spare. As such, there is no reason why he can’t get to 35 against Phoenix.
Kemba Walker Under 2.5 three-pointers made (+104)
Not unlike Boston, Phoenix defense the three-point line in an effective manner. In fact, the Suns are No. 1 in fewest three-pointers allowed per game at 10.9. That does not bode well for Walker’s prospects of dialing long distance with consistency. And he hasn’t been great from deep in recent contests, anyway. The former UConn star is 7-for-28 in the last four.
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